Business Central Magazine
Cover Story
If you build it, they will come
By GAIL IVERS // Photos by JOEL BUTKOWSKI, BUTKOWSKI DIGITAL IMAGING
Tom Frericks, owner of Ultimate Sports Bar, has almost forgotten that he once had something that he lost in a fire..
First Impressions
By Ari Kaufman
Is your website our of date? Don’t leave visitors with a bad first impression.
S-Corp, C-Corp, LLC?
By Jean Massmann, BerganKDV
Making the right decision in the alphabet soup of business tax structures is critical for every small business owner.
Online Only
MONEY WASTERS
Business owners have lots of expenses and investments to consider. When you’re working with a limited budget, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons of each business expense. Common culprits of business overspending include manual audits, accounting software, and digital subscriptions. Forbes recommends 14 ways to avoid wasting money
avoiding burnout
Small business owners may be setting themselves up for burnout without even realizing it. Little habits and practices, like not getting enough sleep or working too many long hours can you leave you tired, unmotivated, and irritable.resources and finding low-cost external resources.
Improving hybrid work
Firms that continue with a hybrid work model may face challenges such as communication, coordination and creativity. This 5C checklist may help.
becoming profitable
The proper balance of business metrics and flexibility creates a systematic, repeatable approach to profitability. As they say, what gets measured gets done. This four-step approach can help.
Where are the workers?
Economy Central
Where are the workers?
Recent research reveals that retirements may be a key factor in the decline of workers. By Hannah Mayhew and Lynn MacDonald
This story first appeared in the May-June 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine. The following references were used in the story.
References
Domash, A. and L.H. Summers. (2022). How tight are U.S. labor markets? NBER Working Paper 29739. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from http://www.nber.org/papers/w29739
Freeman, R.B. (January 2022). Planning for the “expected unexpected”: work and retirement in the U.S. after the COVID -19 pandemic shock. NBER Working Paper 29653. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from: http://www.nber.org/papers/w29653
Fry, R. (2021, November 4). Amid the pandemic, a rising share of older U.S. adults are now retired. Pew Research Center. Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/11/04/amid-the-pandemic-a-rising-share-of-older-u-s-adults-are-now-retired/
Monte, F., Redding, S. J., & Rossi-Hansberg, E. (2018, December). Commuting, migration, and local employment elasticities. American Economic Review. Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257%2Faer.20151507
Sanandaji, T., Monte, F., Ham, A., & Tarki, A. (2021, June 14). Attracting talent during a worker shortage. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://hbr.org/2021/06/attracting-talent-during-a-worker-shortage
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Unemployment Rate [UNRATE], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE, February 25, 2022.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings: Total Nonfarm [JTSJOR], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/JTSJOR, February 25, 2022.
e biggest drivers of poor sleep is using electronic devices at bedtime. By Ashlinn Rooney
This story first appeared in the March-April 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine.
Following are the sources used in this story: “1 in 3 adults don’t get enough sleep.” CDC. Feb. 18, 2016. https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/p0215-enough-sleep.html “Blue light has a dark side.” Harvard Health Publishing. July 7, 2020. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side Fry, Alexa and Alex Demitriu. “How to Relieve Stress for Bedtime.” Sleep Foundation. Jan. 8, 2021. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-hygiene/how-to-relieve-stress-for-bedtime Rath, Tom and Jim Harter. “Exercise, Sleep, and Physical Well-Being.” Gallup. Oct. 21, 2010. https://news.gallup.com/businessjournal/127211/exercise-sleep-physical-wellbeing.aspx
geography matters
It turns out that where we live affects how much we are likely to purchase. By Allison Bily and Lynn MacDonald
This story first appeared in the March-April 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine.
The following source was used in this story: Diamond, R. and E. Moretti. Where is Standard of Living the Highest? Local Prices and the Geography of Consumption. (December 2021) NBER working paper #29533.
cultivating innovation
Feature
Cultivating Innovation
Continually seeking creative solutions to your customers’ needs is one step toward innovation. By Jeanine Nistler
This story first appeared in the May-June 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine.
No matter the depth and breadth of innovation, the responsibility to innovate does not rest at the top of an organization. In fact, it should not rest there, according to local business leaders and innovation guru Jeffrey Baumgartner.
MasterClass has a considerable amount of content related to innovation.
Old house. new space. big plans.
Special Focus: Sauk Rapids
Old house. New space. Big plans. By Rene Kaluza.
This story first appeared in the May-June 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine.
Benton County Historical Society will open what has been known as the Robinson-Stanton House as its new offices and research center later this year. The house, built by Leonard Robinson at 202 Second St. S, is the only one constructed of Sauk Rapids granite.
The Clearing now offers a rentable event center and building for smaller gatherings, an interactive water feature, and an outdoor amphitheater.
the power of automation
TechStrategies
The Power of Automation Technology is available today to assist small business owners and marketers in every industry to bring all or part of their operations to the cloud.
cyber safety
Protecting your business from cyber-attacks doesn’t need to break your budget.
This story first appeared in the May-June 2022 issue of Business Central Magazine.
The first step in improving your cybersecurity is understanding your risk of an attack, and where you can make the biggest improvements. Following are some useful tools provided by the federal government.
- The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cyber Resilience Review (CRR) is a non-technical assessment to evaluate operational resilience and cybersecurity practices. You can either do the assessment yourself, or request a facilitated assessment by DHS cybersecurity professionals.
- The Federal Communications Commission offers a cybersecurity planning tool to help you build a strategy based on your unique business needs.
- (DHS) also offers free cyber hygiene vulnerability scanning for small businesses. This service can help secure your internet-facing systems from weak configuration and known vulnerabilities.